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Lighty scored 17 of his 21 in the second half to lead the Buckeyes (26-2, 13-2 Big Ten) to a win after two recent losses, beating Illinois 89-70 on Tuesday night.

During one three-minute span, Lighty scored all 13 of Ohio State's points (to just two for the Illini) and had three steals.

"They should put a statue in front of the Schottenstein Center of David Lighty, just what he's meant to this program, not only on the court," coach Thad Matta said, referring to Ohio State's home arena. "His performance there in the second half was high level. I looked out there, (and) it was like he was everywhere."

The Illini scored 11 of the first 13 of the second half to pull within 49-43. Then Lighty scored Ohio State's next 13 to build the lead back to 62-45.

"I've been through the ups and downs of college basketball," said Lighty, a fifth-year senior who was 2-of-9 from the field in Sunday's loss at then-No. 11 Purdue. "People go through slumps. I just needed to work my way out of it. To keep shooting. My teammates have confidence in me, and they get mad at me when I don't shoot the ball when I'm open. They trust in me, and I trust in them."

Oklahoma troubles: The Sooners must give players a week off from training in the offseason after reporting secondary violations to the NCAA. Meanwhile, defensive tackle Stacy McGee was arrested on a marijuana possession citation and released over the weekend.